The present invention generally relates to improvements in the production of a log of a common carrier truck reporting the time intervals of driving operation and rest periods as mandated by law to avoid driver fatigue and, more particularly, to improvements which verify the content of the log and, once such verification becomes known to the driver, contributes to voluntary compliance with the mandated requirements.
It is known from government agency reports, as exemplified by the report of the Federal Highway Administration that 5,126 highway accidents involving common carrier trucks occurred in 1996, and it is believed, based on studies of the circumstances of the accidents that the vast majority were due to driver fatigue, either driving longer that the allotted time, typically ten hours, and/or not resting for the allotted time, typically eight hours, before resuming driving.
Addressing the aforesaid problem, it is well documented in the patented literature, as exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 5,740,548 for Driver Safety Parameter Display Apparatus issued to Hudgens on Apr. 14, 1998, to embody the truck with a computer which monitors the time durations of initial operation and resumed operation, and downloads these monitored events in a printed log which being computer-produced cannot be readily altered by the driver, his employer, or like individual having a motivation to do so.
On a long cross country run, it is not uncommon to provide a primary driver and an assistant driver, each driving a ten hour shift and these shifts being taken consecutively, wherein the non-driving driver complies with the rest period while a passenger enroute.
It is known however from common experience and also from accident investigations, that the log reporting two drivers is not always accurate in that drivers, in the parlance of the trade, was often a xe2x80x9cphantomxe2x80x9d driver, i.e. one that did provide a ten hour driving shift. The ascribing heretofore of drivers per shift lacked the computer verification of its inherent operation because this circumstance of the identification of the drivers is not a factor monitored by the computer, but rather is information manually, so to speak, entered into the log by the driver or by an employer to circumvent the expenses of complying with applicable government regulations.
This specific problem of non-compliance is recognized in the previously noted ""548 patent, and the solution recommended is to embody the truck computer with circuitry operating a xe2x80x9ctamperxe2x80x9d signal in the event that a one-driver assignment entered into the computer is changed to a two-driver assignment. This solution is difficult to implement, and changes in assignments either initially or enroute are not prohibited by law and should be permitted, provided only that the regulations of driving and rest period intervals are complied with.
Broadly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a common carrier truck computer-produced log overcoming the foregoing and other shortcomings of the prior art.
More particularly, it is an object to achieve the inherent verification of computer operation of computer-monitored parameters, such as hours of operation and of rest periods of non-operation, should they occur, and also verification of the non-monitored circumstance of the identification of different drivers in consecutive ten hour driving shifts.
The description of the invention which follows, together with the accompanying drawings should not be construed as limiting the invention to the example shown and described, because those skilled in the art to which this invention appertains will be able to devise other forms thereof within the ambit of the appended claims.